You Think We Didn't Notice?
by Writer Noire
Summary: *After Fusion Showoff* 6 months after Malchite's siege on Beach City, a small calm has returned to Earth. The Cluster is not yet due and the two gems face a choice. Until something from Homeworld comes for the gems and now the fate of Earth's defenders is once again on the line.
1. Chapter 1

The day in Beach City was nice and peaceful. Until a large cloud of dust and green filled the air. Peridot stood with her cannon pointing at the wall. She shook her head in approval as the cliff side became more open to her.

 _'Perfect. Now I have a place to build my new lab, away from the rest. And it'll have all the things a lab needs. Like walls...and test subjects. Maybe even a-'_

"Peridot!" A loud voice called out. The green gem fell out of her concentration and turned to see Stevonnie running toward her. "Ah great. What do you want?"

Stevonnie stopped in her tracks and rubbed the back of her neck. "Well since you joined us, the others were wondering about getting your own room in the temple."

The green gem looked at the fusion with surprise as she glanced at the hole. "You know that kind of information would be nice if you could've told me, three hours ago. I literally told you that I was working on finding a spot for a lab. Ever since the Malachite attack I've been working on somethings."

Stevonnie's expression went serious. "Like the Cluster." Peridot smirked at the prediction and pulled up her screen. "Of course not. As much as I hate to admit it, my calculations were misguided and the actual date for it to take form should be within several more centuries. So we have time."

"What? But Connie heard you...I...you." Peridot turned her back on the human fusion. "Don't feel too bad and no. I already apologized for scaring your one of your counterparts, but I'm not going to apologize again. Besides how much longer are you going to remain fused? It makes me uncomfortable."

Peridot yelped as Stevonnie grabbed her and hooked her arm around the gem's neck. "Aw, come on Peri. Can you honestly say that?" Peridot nodded yes and broke from her grasp. "Yes, you clod. Now please be very gem-like and let me do my own wor-"

A small boom was heard along with rising sand covering the two. Peridot stuck her head out and spit out sand. "What now?" She was answered by Lapis Lazuli wiping some sand off. "Gems today."

"Morning Peridot. How are you?"

"Fine. Until a fusion told me information too late and another rude gem covering me in Earthly properties!" Lapis scratched her head at the description. "That's weird. Garnet's not here and Amethyst is out on a mission."

"Stevonnie and you, you stupid clods!" Stevonnie's head popped out of her own pile and smiled like a child. "Sorry Peri, but it's been about six months since Malachite's defeat. I'm surprised you're not used to all this."

"Don't be. I, only proposed a small turce to defeat Malachite. I had no intention to stay around until it became simple that this was the only thing on Earth that weren't gem ruins." Lapis rubbed her arm awkwardly as she was in the same situation. Stevonnie sighed and pushed herself free. "Well, it doesn't matter. You and the gems are on better terms now."

Lapis joined in. "Yeah, we both have. Peridot, while we're both on Earth we have to admit that we've had some significant change since the Gems allowed us to stay here." Peridot turned her nose away from Lapis and focused on Stevonnie.

"Only because I'm outmatched by them that I attempt peaceful attempts. I am not part of your rebellious group with exception of major threats. Which is currently nothing! Now if you excuse me, I need to setup my lab."

Stevonnie brushed off the rest of the sand. "In the temple or out here?" Peridot gritted her teeth comically. "I making that decision!" She grumbled away as she left the hybrid with the blue gem.

"She's very stubborn, but I don't blame her. Homeworld's roots run through her like blood through humans. It's very similar to me, but I learned to adjust." Lapis responded. Stevonnie nodded sadly at her friend's analysis. Trust between Lapis and the gems was tough to build up and even now it was still there.

"True, but she'll come around. Now what have you been doing?" Lapis stretched her arms. "Just flying around the world. I want to know the world that I'm going to be living in. Besides do mind unfusing, I have a special gift for the two individuals in you." Stevonnie grimaced to a degree at the request, but complied.

The fusion glowed a soft light before breaking into two. Steven opened his eyes to see him holding Connie close. "Oh, sorry Connie." Connie laughed at his shy expression with little blush on her face.

"It's alright Steven." Lapis smiled at the two and focused on her gem. The two looked at Lapis as her gem glow brightly and a tiny ice sculpture formed before them.

The sculpture was the form of three individuals: Steven, Connie, and Stevonnie. It was perfectly detailed with a sharp look. Steven's shield held executed every detail perfectly. Connie was shown holding Rose's sword with a shiny glint to it. Stevonnie was in a battle stance behind the duo with the sword and shield ready to go.

"Making the figure was easy, but everlasting ice was hard to find. Luckily with some visits to older gem temples, I managed to find the right materials for this gift. Think of it as a thank you gift you two." The two looked at the figurine with stars in their eyes.

"Oh my gosh Lapis, this is beautiful. And you say it'll never melt." Lapis giggled at his expression. "I've tested it against the sun itself and the worst it got was drippy. I think I know how to get gifts right."

"You've got that right. It takes humans years of practice and patience to execute something like this. It's wonderful Lapis." Connie said as she and Steven examined it with excitement. "I hope so." A light shined brightly as Stevonnie was holding the sculpture. "We-I should thank you."

The fusion hugged Lapis as the gem gladly returned it back. Peridot watched from the background and looked away. "How sappy. Now let's see, what to do next." The warp pad inside the house glowed prominently as the Crystal Gems. "And here they are."

"Ah, good morning Peridot. How are you today?" Pearl asked as she swept off some soot. "Where have you been?"

"Oh man, Peridot! You had to have been there! We split a corrupted gem in half. And not only that we encountered several some huge artifacts from the temple. Although Garnet refused to let us go home with any."

"They were locked behind several security encryptions. That alone should speak about how deadly it is." Amethyst waved Garnet off. "Yeah, yeah dangerous items that don't need to be taken home, but still it was awesome to break through all those doors!" Peridot rolled her eyes at Amethyst and walked up to Garnet.

"Anyways, I was informed by the second permafusion that you in fact offered me a room in the temple." Garnet rolled her shoulder off of any remaining soot on her suit. "Yes. You've been very helpful in the town's repairs and our battle with Malachite. Lapis is under similar conditions, but we would like to address you first of having your own position in the temple. If you accept my hand then we can begin."

Peridot's eyes widened at Garnet's offer. Though not to have been around for too long, she knew it simply meant that they were offering her a position among the Crystal Gems. And the green gem knew what they were asking. A chance to join the gems on Earth. To be a Crystal Gem. She reached out to the smiling faces of the gems.

She smiled at the offer, but drew her hand back. Garnet and the others looked surprised at the choice as Peridot backed up. "Th-that was nice fusio-Garnet, but I must decline. The things I helped you with were to satisfy things on my end. To save myself. And repairing the town was a small favor for Steven's father for helping me with the light cannons. I just can't accept being part of your...regime."

She stood silently as she, Pearl, and Amethyst looked at Garnet. She had a small frown on her face as she withdrew her own hand. "I see."

"Garnet...I-" She stopped as Garnet smiled at her. "The offer to have your place in the temple will stand as long as we hold you in our good graces. You've been a valuable ally, Peridot and we'd be honored if you could join us. But if you can't then that is up to you alone."

The Homeworld Gem stood as Garnet walked passed her and left the house. Amethyst shrugged at the condition and walked to her room. Pearl went to Peridot who was frozen in her spot. "Peridot? Are you okay?"

"I'm...I'm fine. Just a bit bewildered. I expected something much harsher to come from her. I basically admitted to using our circumstances to save myself. I thought she would snap." Pearl gave a small agreement. "She probably would've. If it wasn't for the fact she sees something."

"What?" Peridot asked, "What could she possibly see. I told her the truth. I used you to save myself."

Pearl shook her head at Peridot. "Garnet's an excellent judge of character. Probably because she has two minds on her side, but still. She wasn't chosen leader by Rose because she just wasn't strong. Garnet was chosen because she has the most capacity for understanding. Even I will admit, I'm not the best at it."

"That scuffle we had six months ago would agree."

Pearl's smile turned to a small frown. "Anyways, Garnet just carries some understanding with you. Maybe we'll find out what she means later."

"Right, later." Peridot sighed as she walked gem took in some air as she looked to see Stevonnie and Lapis looking at something and Garnet resting on the beach. Despite the peaceful scenario, Peridot felt something was off. It was faint, but there.

 _'Oh why do I have such a bad feeling about this?'_

In the deeper outer reaches of space, a pod flies with one passenger. The soft glow of a gem shines dimly in the dark interior of the pod. A holographic screen opens and Yellow Diamond appears. The figure inside looked up and smiled respectfully at the Diamond's presence.

"Ah, greetings my Diamond. I'm surprised you have called me directly." The yellow gem smiled at the operative. "I know it is, but over a certain amount of time we've discovered some...pressing issues. Do you know what I'm talking about."

"Yes, my Diamond. The missing exploration ship and the missing crew. Apparently a missing Peridot, Jasper, and Lazuli have been sent to the testing grounds of the Cluster."

"Correct. We've been stuck in the dark for too long on the matter and recently there was a recent spike of energy detected from the planet. Not enough to be the Cluster, but equal to a strong fusion." The operative's eyes glinted with with malicious tint. "Fusion? That disgraceful technique? How fitting we detect such a weak power from that pathetic colony. What are my objectives? The Peridot you sent glossed over the details, to prepare my pod."

Yellow Diamond pulled up a picture of the missing crew sent to Earth. "Find these Gems. Update me on the Cluster's status. And most importantly, find the gems responsible for that energy spike and shatter them."

"Earth is also known to be home of the Crystal Gems. And my actions, should I discover them." She licked her lips at the Yellow Diamond's answer. The Gem leader pulled a picture of the last known gems. Garnet, Pearl, and Rose Quartz and with a swipe of her fingers, in bold letters read "EXTERMINATE".

"Understood, my Diamond." Yellow Diamond cut the transmission and the pod once again fell to darkness. The operative in the pod, laughed softly as it grew more and more maniacal. "Oh I haven't been this excited for awhile. It'll be fun."


	2. Chapter 2

Garnet summoned her gauntlets as Steven and Connie held their respective weapons. Pearl held her sword up and looking at the combatants. "Ready?" Lapis and Amethyst watched with interest as Peridot was trying to ignore the exciting prospect of watching gem's in combat.

It wasn't the best entertainment she'd like since her battle with Malachite, but she's been more experienced than when she initially landed on Earth. Pearl swung the sword down as Garnet leapt forward. Steven twirled Connie around and a bright light enveloped them. Without blinking Garnet rammed her fist into the light and the ground they stood upon became a crater. The light showed Stevonnie with her shield out. The two fusions struggled for the upper hand, but Stevonnie let the momentum on with Garnet shoot her across the arena as the human fusion spun.

"Whoo! Go Stevonnie! You can beat her!" Lapis cheered. Amethyst rolled her eyes happily as she punched Lapis in the shoulder.

"Please. They're good, but Garnet has been in this much longer than they have. It makes sense that she'll win." Lapis retorted, "Maybe, but I remember having a harder time fighting Stevonnie more than Garnet."

"That's because you would hesitate to hit your friend. Your emotions while a disadvantage on your side was one of the key factors in us winning." Peridot said. The purple and blue gems hushed her as Garnet pulled herself out.

"Not bad." Garnet said.

"Thanks. You're not so bad yourself." The maroon gem smiled at Stevonnie before releasing control of her gauntlets. "Here, let's push things further."

And with that, Garnet disappeared in a flash. Stevonnie's eyes widened before feeling something against her back. It was Garnet and she whistled at the hybrid. The next second she was gone and all Stevonnie could do was put up her bubble shield. Pearl took notes on the approach and Amethyst was whistling at Garnet's speed.

"Dang, I knew she was fast, but wow."

"Wow indeed. Her speed is amazing. I can barely see her." Peridot turned her head to Lapis. "Barely?"

The bubble shield echoed as Garnet appeared right on top of it with her gauntlet growing in size. Stevonnie pushed against Garnet's weight, but saw the cracks in the bubble shield. Seeing her chance, Stevonnie expanded the bubble till it popped. Garnet went into air and landed on the ground as Stevonnie rolled out of the way.

"That's enough for today." Garnet said.

"Aw, come on! Garnet, I barely got warmed up!" The fusion smiled at her walked off. "Don't worry, it's just that I need attend a mission now. We'll complete our sparring session another day."

Amethyst groaned in defeat as Lapis sighed in relief. "Gah, I had our bet ready! I was so gonna win!"

"Knowing you it would've been helping piling up new amounts of pollution in that room."

"Pssh, maybe." Pearl sat down and listened to Amethyst and Lapis argue as Peridot walked away from them. She was walking towards Stevonnie. "Hey Peridot, what's up?"

The gem said nothing as she was picking through her screens and pressed several files. Stevonnie stood awkwardly before Peridot grimaced. "St-stevonnie."

"Yeah?" Peridot closed her eyes tightly and breathed in slowly. The green gem had a request and wasn't quite sure how to actually explain it. Every part of her being was slightly squealing in excitement or fear. It didn't matter as Peridot finally let it go. "Please fuse with me!"

Stevonnie looked at her in surprise as Peridot's cheeks flushed with green. "I mean...it's highly unorthodox for a Peridot to ask such a question, but I think since you defy any sense of fusion it would be nice to be your...partner."

"Well, I thought I'd never see the day that you'd ask for a fusion. I thought Pearl, Amethyst, or even Lapis would be happy to have the honor." Peridot chuckled at the thought of one of them being her fusion partner. "Y-yeah, an honor. Look do you agree or not."

Stevonnie smiled. "Sure, I'll fuse with you." Peridot reached out for Stevonnie's hand, but the hybrid fusion split. Steven and Connie were left in her place. "Wait, what? I-I thought…"

"Sorry, Peridot. Connie has to go back home soon and when we fuse, we want it to last." Peridot blushed embarrassingly and nervously rubbed her arm. "That's very true. Human beings have their own obligations and I guess you both want to fuse with me."

"Yeah, I always wondered what it feel like to be a part of you. Steven wonders the same."

Peridot smiled at the two before looking away to see Pearl ,Lapis and Amethyst watching them. They must've heard her request, otherwise why else did the three gems look surprised at her. Connie grabbed her green gauntlet. "Hey, Peridot do you mind walking me out with Steven?"

"S-sure, Connie, Steven. Let's go." She looked at the floor as they passed Lapis and Amethyst whispering amongst themselves. Even on Earth, Peridot imagines the whispers to be small jeers at her. They obviously didn't mean too much, but it seemed the whispers were getting to her.

Once on the warp pad, the trio vanished in a beam of light. "That's interesting. I never knew Peridot was interested in fusion."

Lapis rubbed her chin. "Why wouldn't she? Fusion's a very touchy subject for most gems. But, to be honest in my opinion it's very...cold." Amethyst and Pearl glanced nervously at each other. Fusion was a very touchy subject for both their new residents. One has no experience and the other had a terrible experience.

"Just you and that empty space. And a being you can't help, but…" Her fist clenched tightly at remembering Malachite. Though the fusion began to feel for itself, most of its existence was a living hell for Lapis. Pearl walked over and placed her hand on Lapis's shoulder. "That's enough Lapis. We shouldn't dwell too much on it."

The blue gem calmed down slightly as Amethyst looked nervous. "Anyways, why don't we head back to the temple. I'm sure we can find some stuff to do for the next few hours." Lapis nodded slightly as she got up. Pearl followed as did Amethyst as they walked to the warp pad.

0-0-0-0-0

Garnet landed on the ground with the ground cracking at her feet. She took a deep breath and let the stress. "It's not possible Ruby. There is no way for her to come."

"You know it, I know it! We need to prepare ourselves. Steven will especially be needed to hidden. Somewhere safe, I don't know!"

"Calm down! She cannot come here. It's such a small probability-"

"But, it is there Sapphire! The fact that we saw her pod come here. If we don't do something everyone is going to die! This planet will be left defenseless and what about that Cluster? If we're gone, then every life on Earth is dead."

"I already know that. Understand that we've been wrong before. If things should happen then let them happen."

"Bu-"

"Please, Ruby no 'buts'. I feel your worry, but we can't overreact over every little thing about to happen. Nothing is written in stone, I learned that from you."

The fusion's fist unclenched followed by a nervous chuckle. Taking a brief moment to look into the future, stood an odd sight. Their supposed enemy was there. Her gem glowed brightly in the misty vision.

 _"What this idiotic fusion has done has made you twice as foolish. I have more than enough power to destroy you."_

 _The shadowy figure in front of it chuckled with two voices. "You are a fool. What you don't get is that, I'm not going to beat. No, I'm going to destroy you." The two stared down as everything faded to black._

"If she does come, that'll be interesting to watch." Garnet hummed to herself. Trusting both her counterparts and herself, Garnet felt more in control come over her.

0-0-0-0-0

Entering Earth's Atmosphere.

Gravity Difference: 0

Population: Organic Life currently present

Gem Population: Unknown.

"Unknown? Then again, it's been awhile since we heard anything from this old rock." The pod came and closer to the ground until it was finally landed gently on the ground. Opening her pod, the new gem walked out and breathed in the air. "Surprisingly clean."

Ruffling behind her was a human with a pistol in his hand and dressed like a bystander. "Holy…"

She turned and grinned. "Oh, organic life. Interesting. How do you defend yourself?" Her palm glowed a soft green before pointing it at the human. The person immediately pointed his weapon. "I'll shoot!"

"How cute." The green shot straight forward as the man fired too. The beam went right through him and the bullet ricocheted off her shoulder. She looked at her shoulder and saw no mark on her. "Not bad though. I felt that."

The gem walked forward and over her victim's body. She saw the smoke rising from the open hole in his chest. "Not bad at all human. Now...where are those gems?"


	3. Chapter 3

The night sky was always nice to Peridot. It reminded her of the times she was travelling the cosmos. True this was when she was a definite part of the Homeworld's empire, but she's grown accustomed to the Earth and it's very strange culture.

Thanks to Steven's father, she warmed up to the humanity and the gems. The human male was always busy so Peridot never got to see him as often as she did six months ago, but it didn't matter. The point was that she didn't feel so alone on the planet and the Crystal Gems were more than welcome enough to let her stay.

"It's so strange. Not even a full year has passed by and yet..." She glanced at her limb enhancers. She's only been separated from once from her entire existence and that was when Jasper poofed her. She regained her shape and reluctantly decided to stay with Steven and the others.

Even after swimming in the afterglow of winning a battle, Peridot was very nervous to know what was going to happen next. The fight with Pearl opened her eyes even more to see that the Gems maybe eons behind Homeworld, they can still fight. It occurred to her, that when they offered her room in the temple, she noticed a swell of pride at the offer.

"Hmph, those clods. Of course they would like me on their team. I'm one of the brightest gems they could ever include." Peridot said to herself. "Well it does seem like you're tooting your own horn."

The green gem jolted in surprise as she looked to see Lapis drinking a water bottle. "I am not! I do not possess the horn for such an action!" Lapis's expression told her that's not what she meant.

Peridot sighed in defeat as Lapis sat next to her. "You seem very conflicted today weren't you."

"My performance today was no different from the past few Earth rotations. I don't know what you're seeing."

"Amethyst and Pearl told me how you reacted when you were offered a room in the temple." Peridot looked away as Lapis scooted a little closer. "And you wanted to fuse with Stevonnie. You never showed any interest in fusion."

Peridot shut her eyes tightly, "Alright, I get it! I've been conflicted and confused all day!" Lapis flinched at her sudden anger. "I...I was about to take their offer, but I remember that I am loyal to Homeworld, my Diamond. And the request to fuse was just something that popped out nowhere. I-I didn't mean to...I just-" Lapis put her hand on Peridot's shoulder.

"Calm down Peridot, it's okay. Look we've been stuck on this rock for sometime. It would seem natural for people like us to, you know...warm up to Earth."

"That's the problem! I didn't want to warm up to Earth. This was just a pebble compared to Homeworld, I despised every moment I had to be here. B-but...I gained a friend. I cared about his safety and...I spent time with these gems to prepare a fight with yo-Malachite. It's...I...I just can't help, but feel this way." Peridot mumbled.

Lapis patted Peridot on the head. "It's alright. I'm in the same boat. Although mine was more of, 'I'm trapped in this gem forsaken solitude with someone I hate!' kind of deal." Peridot snickered at Lapis's joking tone and felt more relaxed.

"You're right Lazuli, by far you had it worse. No wonder you don't seem phased by it."

"Allying yourself with the Crystal Gems took great strength and swallowed pride. I could've never seen myself do that if I was in your situation."

Peridot remembered meeting Malachite for the first time. "Maybe, I wouldn't have. Not if it wasn't for your brief control over Jasper. I wouldn't have gotten that extra push."

"I guess you can thank me by coming inside with me. Steven wants to introduce us to a few more of his cartoon shows." Peridot turned her nose at the idea. "Yeah, right. I know other shows that carry more significance than crying processed energy suppliers."

Lapis smiled at her and pulled out her pocket, a small flash drive given to her by Steven. "Here. You might like this then."

The flash drive found its way to Peridot's fingers. "What's this?"

"The entire first two seasons of Camp Pining Heart, given by Sadie from the donut shop." The flash drive almost fell from Peridot's grasp as she briefly squealed in delight. "Ah, really? Steven only showed me one episode and never disclosed the information that he had this! Oh that hybrid is going to pay! I know I'll make him listen to my analytical reports on the entire series. It'll take time, but-"

Lapis cleared her throat to gain the other gem's attention. "What do we say Peridot?" The green gem grimaced at remembering basic manners. "Th-thank you, Lapis. It's...appreciated."

"Alright, well we better get out of here soon. Otherwise…" She turned when the sound of a small chopper was heard. Peridot was slowly rising from the ground. "Lapis, I'm going to still need some time by myself, but thank for the company."

She flew away and Lapis just watched her fly off. "Hmph. Well, I know someone's who's not getting any breakfast tomorrow." She turned in huff, but smiled at the childish grin from the gem's face.

0-0-0-0-0-0

Peridot landed near some fields where her pod initially crashed. It was only noticeable, but the small crater that was healing like an old wound. Taking the flash drive and sealing it inside her limb enhancer, the gem landed on the ground. She decided to take a small walk.

"Nine months...just nine months and here I am. Still on Earth. I guess it really can't be helped. Maybe I could…" A metallic thunk hit her leg. It was a rifle and it seemed loaded. "Strange, what's a human's weapon doing out here? I know it's value to humans is high."

Her eyes scanned the horizon until it stopped, dead center. A pod. A gem pod was lying against the Earth. Disregarding the weapon, she prepared her cannon. A small ball of green energy took form. Pushing against running, Peridot took a small peek through the grass to see no one.

The pod's owner was gone. She knew it was piloted one too, by the very model it was. The shadow formation inside showed the shape of a manual console, but more importantly it was because of the set of footprints. Not human ones, but foreign ones.

Peridot pulled up her screen and scanned the print. Results were being loaded up, but as it did the green gem's eyes widened to see a dead human with a clean hole through his chest. His expression was frozen in fear and he was cold.

A small picture was pulled up on her screen. Taking one glance at it, Peridot's legs became jelly at the image. "No...no, no, no, no!"

She backed up and felt irrational fear rise from her core. 'I-If she's here, then…'

Something almost overshadowed Peridot. "Well, well, well. A Peridot on Earth."

"Zircon!" She yelped as turned to see the gem. She stood over Peridot as the green gem was shaking like a leaf. "Wh-what brings you to Earth, um Mistress Zircon." The playful smile on Zircon's face went down.

"You're late on updating Yellow Diamond on the Cluster as well as missing both your guard and informant. What happened to them and the ship you were given?" Peridot gulped in her fear and went into the informat stance. "M-my ship, informant, and guard were taken down by the natural occurrences of this planet. A hurricane to be more precise."

Zircon smiled at the Peridot and loomed over her figure till the entire gem was in her shadow. "I know you are lying. You are not the first gem to ever deceive me. After all a runt like you can't possibly believe that our exploration ship could be taken down by this planet's weak excuse of a storm. And you look...different from your form."

She placed her hand on Peridot's gem and began deconstructing her form. The gem felt her being become even more ruined as she reverted to her pre-regenerative state. The glasses became her visor, her hair diamond shaped, and her limbs shrink down in her limb enhancers.

Pulling her hand away, Peridot panted at the forced shapeshift. "Now that you look like a proper Peridot, why don't you tell me what really happened. Because I would hate for you to have a bad time telling me or more specifically Yellow Diamond."

"I-I-I please, let me give away a proper explanation. We...I encountered several other gems on this planet." Zircon raised an eyebrow at her defeated expression, but found the information intriguing. "Crystal Gems."

"Yes. And in an act to defeat the Crystal Gems, my informant and guard...fused. They were unstable and couldn't defeat them." Zircon hummed in disapproval. "I hoped that fusion would be a Crystal Gem fusion, but I guess it makes sense. They would be pretty powerful."

"What do you mean?" Zircon smiled sadly. "I did not wish to be held to such actions to such a pretty gem like Lazuli and General Jasper has been quite the military service for our empire, but orders are orders."

Peridot froze at what she was talking about. "Shatter them? B-but why? They did nothing wrong!"

Zircon glared at the outburst of Peridot and the green gem felt silent as the wind around her seemed to stop. "If two gems from different classes need to fuse to beat the likes of these weaklings, these Crystal Gems, we will not allow such an act to go by. Your crew has been given an order of execution along with the remaining forces of Rose Quartz's army."

The images of Lapis, Stevonnie, Garnet, and the others flashed through her mind. "No please don't! I can ensure you that the Crystal Gems carry no threat to us at all as does Lapis. It is unwise and unjust to do such a thing!"

"Are you questioning the orders given by a Diamond and in turn defy my actions? Listen to me and listen carefully." She walked closer to Peridot with each step as Peridot stepped back in fear. "The Earth carries traitors to our empire. Lazuli and Jasper have shown weakness and disregard to our laws. They will shatter, I will shatter them myself. And I will take immense satisfaction in grinding each their gems to powder and the likes of you will not interfere, is that clear!"

"No! I will not back down from you shattering my friends! I can't do that!" And in the heat of the moment charged her blast and shot a narrow beam into her forehead. The taller gem's head snapped back. Peridot was panting wildly before realizing what she's done. "Z-Zircon?"

"Well I'm very glad that the information on the Cluster is within your armor." She raised her head with a burnt mark on her forehead. "Because I'm going to enjoy breaking your gem between my fingers."

Peridot didn't even get a chance to dodge as she was left with her eyes bugged out and her mouth wide open. Zircon's fist found it lodged deep in her torso. That alone left Peridot on her knees gasping for air. "Pathetic rock." She grabbed Peridot and bear hugged her.

"AH!" She screamed as Zircon smiled at her pain. "Keep screaming. Let me feel your anguish." Peridot felt her body break down as the sickening crunch of her form was heard from being crushed by the pressure.

Zircon focused all of her strength into crushing Peridot that she didn't notice the whistle of something or someone diving down. Until a flash of blue passed Zircon and sent her sprawling across the floor. Peridot fell to the ground and a hand on her. She glanced up to see Steven's crying face and Garnet's relieved face.

"Peridot!" Steven cried as he held her. The green gem barely responded with only an attempt to pat his back. Garnet reluctantly pulled Steven off and checked Peridot. "Peridot, can you stand?"

The gem tried to move her shoulder, but pain was very evident. Garnet understood her condition and gently scooped her up. "Please hold on." Peridot just flashed back and forth. Everything was dancing in her eyes as the ringing in her ears the music. Before blacking out, a flash of blue and pink came, some muffled screams, and the light of fusion coming out.

After that nothing.

0-0-0-0-0

 **Please leave a review. I kinda need to know if I'm doing something wrong or right.**


	4. Chapter 4

Peridot passed out in her arms. Garnet made sure she was far from falling off and turned to see a giant fist made from water floating above them. "Steven! Take Peridot, I'll help Lapis!" She ordered, but to her surprise Steven was already running toward the fight at full speed. Garnet wanted to follow, but couldn't risk Peridot being alone. In most scenarios she's leverage for Zircon to gain the advantage.

"A Crystal Gem, the Lazuli, and an organic meatsack. It must be my lucky day." Zircon laughed as Lapis kept summoning water to her side.

Lapis slamming wave after wave of attacks on Zircon. The field became muddy and flooded with Lapis's attacks continuing. "Shatter, shatter, shatter!" She grunted. Zircon dodged each strike and smiled at Lapis with a predatory grin. "Well, this job's keeps getting interesting and fun. You know I would've thought you'd be smarter than to attack someone like me again."

The expression on Lapis's face told the entire story. Zircon remembered her. "After all you had a few millennia to think about it in your mirror." The mention of her prison, drove Lapis more berserk. Her wings sprouted from her back and soon a torrent of water surrounded them.

Steven almost made it to Lapis, but the current surrounding the two gems was too great. "Lapis!" The ocean gem didn't acknowledge his presence as she snarled at Zircon. "You'll pay for that!"

In a flash she disappeared from view, only to reappear in front of Zircon. The taller gem's head snapped to the side as Lapis landed a sharp right hook. A knee buried itself in her torso and the left cheek of her face. "Now die!"

Zircon smiled at Lapis before leaning over to the right and launching a powerful uppercut, right into Lapis's stomach. And with quick reactions, grabbed the base of her wings and ripped them off. Lapis fell to the ground in great pain. The torrent of water fell as Steven saw this and felt a swell of determination push him.

"That was invigorating. It was so boring the last time we met. But I can't stall any longer, it's time to die." The gem on the neck gave a bright glow as a small sword came through. Its handle carried a diamond pattern, but the butt of it shined the Zircon gem. Raising it above her head, Zircon gave a silent sentence before swinging down.

The axe cut through the air, but a loud gong echoed throughout the field. To her amazement, a small pink shield stopped her blow as Steven struggled to hold his position. "That emblem...that's the symbol of Rose Quartz!"

"Steven." Lapis said as she tried to get up. "Leave my buddy alone!" Zircon was too caught up in the moment that she never noticed a water tendril to wrap around her leg and flinging her across the field.

Lapis got up and tried to ignore the pain. "Are you okay?"

"I'm fine. Thank you for protecting me." Lapis said as she got up. Garnet was jogging toward them with Peridot in her arms. "Good teamwork you two, but we better get out of here. She may attack again."

The ground shook as the trio tried to keep balance. "This was fun, but I got gems to hunt and shards to collect." Zircon rose from floor with her hands open wide. "Thank you for bringing my work early."

In a bright flash of light, two wide energy beams shot toward them. By instinct Steven raised his shield as Lapis grabbed him to move. Both of their personalities crashed as a light brightened between them.

Zircon covered her eyes as the beams finally made contact. A loud explosion gave away its intense heat as the hunter looked at her targets. To her surprise, an expanded version of Rose Quartz's shield stood between the sizzling heat and the rest of them.

"So this is what a true fusion feels like." A new voice said. Garnet had a wide smile of pride on her face as the smoke cleared. There stood Steven and Lapis as one being. They stood a foot taller than garnet with their eyes and hair split by pink and blue. And their outfit consisted of a battle skirt covering their legs and a pink top with a shining yellow star on the chest.

"Fusion. Of course." Zircon sighed disappointingly. "Anyways, are you ready rocks?"

They smiled at Zircon as the puddles around them rose into the air. The very moisture in the air was being sucked into the void as they touched it. The water placed itself around their body and hardened. Soon the new fusion was covered in white armor with a pink shield accompanying them.

"I only speak for one part of me, that I'm going to enjoy destroying you." Garnet stepped up and stopped them. "Wait, we have to retreat. Laven, if you stay and fight: You will die. I cannot stress that far enough. Don't do it."

The hybrid glanced between Zircon and Garnet. They lifted their hand to agree with Garnet, but soon swiped it through the air and caused the remaining water surrounding them to attack Zircon. Garnet held Peridot closely as she could before another wave attacked Zircon's position.

Laven was attacking the Homeworld hunter with everythings she's got. Garnet gritted her teeth angrily as she knew what was coming next. A hand from the ground popped out and grabbed Laven by the ankle.

The fusion could only gasp in surprise as they were dragged into the ground. Garnet couldn't do anything as if she left, Zircon would either kill Peridot or take her hostage. And with great internal debate, the fusion decided to separate into Ruby and Sapphire. "You know what to do?"

"I know what has to be done. Keep Peridot safe. She's got to get some rest and answer a few questions after all this." The gem nodded and watched her counterpart dive down the hole Laven was in. Meanwhile the hybrid finally felt the hand let go as it made them crash into a cavern underneath.

"Here we are. A nice little cavern to bury the merry couple. I hope you enjoyed your little temper tantrum Lapis Lazuli, but our game ended long ago. And to you Rose Quartz, I'm thoroughly disappointed in you. I expected a challenge."

The hybrid was feeling tranquil anger course through their body. "Well, you really underestimate the determination of the kid and Lapis has quite a few grudges to get through. But hey, if you want a challenge then you're looking right at it."

Their armor was in shambles and red blood was leaking down the side of their cheek, but Laven was more than ready to continue the battle up ahead. Zircon smiled at her and her gem was glowing brightly. A long sword was brought out and pointed at fusion.

It was a double edged blade, four feet long, with sharp crossguards. Laven summoned her shield and regretted to not equipping her sword. The one of them was very inexperienced in controlling fusion itself and offensive weapons weren't their specialty.

Zircon smirked before running straight forward. The cavern echoed with the constant barrage of clashes. The sword constantly bounced off the pink shield as it began to wane underneath all the pressure. Laven was growing tired as each strike made her arms feel heavier.

"Where is it darling? That challenge. Aren't you going to make this interesting?" Zircon said as she slapped the shield away with the flat side of her blade. The shield dissipated into sparkles and left Laven defenseless. "Start dancing, my enemy."

Zircon's sword began to glow into a bright light and the hybrid covered her eyes. As it died down, they felt a small bit of wind past their ear. Pain erupted in their side as blood began to pour out. "Dance. Dance! Dance if you want to survive!"

Laven found the sword glowing again, but couldn't move as the pain held them down. They saw Zircon's disappointed look as she raised the blade above their head. "Typical. I didn't even break a sweat."

She swung down and Laven shut their eyes. The whistle of the blade's swing was interrupted as two gauntlets stopped the sword strike. The fusion opened their eyes to see Ruby struggling to hold Zircon's sword away from them. "Ruby!"

The red gem didn't look at them and with a loud grunt, diverted the sword's path into the ground. "A Ruby? How interesting! Are you part of that little fusion up there?"

"Shut up!" Ruby said as she launched herself forward and landed a large punch onto Zircon's face. The hunter was sent flying into wall as Ruby picked Laven up. "Hold on, you guys!"

They walked till they were underneath the hole Laven fell through. Before leaving however, Ruby focused her energy onto one of her gauntlets and punched the ground with as much strength that she could muster.

The ground cracked and made the cavern begin to cave in. Laven tried to maintain her form until they reached the surface as Ruby jumped into the air and pulling them up by any means necessary.

The two soon appeared on the surface with Sapphire dragging Peridot with her. Before defusing, Laven closed her eyes and sighed peacefully. They separated with Lapis and Steven breaking apart. The young boy passed out and Lapis pushed herself up.

"Steven…" She reached out to grab him, but Garnet intervened. "Don't touch him." Every word was cold as ice. She stepped back from Garnet who picked up Steven.

"Here carry Peridot. And as of right now, you're not allowed anywhere near Steven from awhile now. Got it?" The blue gem was about to object by the order, but she realized that she was in the wrong. "Your desire to destroy Zircon almost got you both killed. I thought you would at least not drag Steven into this."

"I-I'm sorry Garnet. I wasn't thinking, let me just-" Garnet didn't give her a chance to speak for herself as she was already running toward the temple. Lapis looked at Peridot and sighed. Picking up the green gem, Lapis summoned her wings and rose toward the air.

The whistling wind was the only thing that Lapis bothered listening to as she flew toward the temple. Just when life and trust with the gems was possible, the biggest mistake she made was in front of the most influential of their group.

Peridot was mumbling something under her breath, but Lapis didn't need to hear anything at the moment. She just wanted a moment to reflect on her actions and how everything she's trying to do. "If Zircon's on Earth, then everything's going to be destroyed."

Her anger and guilt were slowing Lapis as she was now gliding through the air with her unconscious passenger mumbling nonsense the whole way back to the temple.

0-0-0-0-0

When both gems escaped the ground rumbled and explode from the inside. The buried gem got up and swiped some dirt of her shoulder. "That was certainly fun." She wiped some dirt from her cheek and was surprised to feel the lingering pain from Ruby's strike.

"Pain." She said out loud. "Such a strange sensation to have. I've never felt that in a long time. You're quite the gem Ruby. You'll make a fine addition to my collection." Her gem was glowing brightly at the surge of energy rushing through her.

"Well played Crystal Gems! You won't be a complete waste of time afterall! Now...how can we make our little game more _interesting_." Zircon chuckled as she saw several lights speeding toward her direction. "I wonder how they'll appreciate a couple bodies on their conscious."

She summoned her sword and smiled as the vehicles stopped and humans surrounded her. "Hello, I welcome your presence with open...wounds." A man walked up and commanded her to put down the weapon and surrender.

"Surrender? You sacks of flesh are asking me to surrender? You are all such... ** _IDIOTS_**." Holding her palm out, Zircon fired one blast and a bright light consumed the humans. After it died down fire, wreckage, and the blood curdling cries of humans filled the air.

Zircon sniffed the air and listened to the dying screams. "It's such a wonderful night."


End file.
